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Tottenham Hotspur have enjoyed a successful season, but might still miss out on Champions League football, will they back their manager in the transfer market this summer?

Whilst most Tottenham Hotspur fans would agree that Daniel Levy has been a positive influence on their club in general, there is a far wider range of opinions when it comes to his transfer dealings.

There is plenty of praise for the manner in which Levy can force a bargain or indeed sell on Spurs’ deadwood at an inflated price, and there was a resurgence of admiration when the machinations behind Ezekiel Fryers move from Manchester United to Spurs via Standard Liege were revealed, but when it comes to the biggest transfers, Levy is viewed by many as a hindrance at times.

His close to the knuckle negotiating style can see transfers fail to go through due to lack of time, or perhaps even an unwillingness to deal with Spurs due to past antagonistic behaviour. More important than this though, has been a seeming lack of confidence in his managers when it comes to splashing out on the biggest transfers.

This might come from past deals failing to live up to expectation, such as David Bentley (still Spurs’ record signing), or it could be because Levy views the success achieved without making this big moves as reason enough not to waste money. Another reason might have been that Levy did not think Harry Redknapp was a long term solution for the club, and was reluctant to back Andre Villas-Boas in a first season that was very much a gamble.

However now this has to change, as Andre Villas-Boas has surely shown that if backed this summer, he can take Spurs up a level. Despite losing Luka Modric, Rafael van der Vaart and Ledley King in the summer, and missing Sandro and Younes Kaboul for long periods through injury, Spurs could well set their records Premier League points total this weekend even if the miss out on a Champions League place.

Villas-Boas is also able to attract players who might not have considered Spurs otherwise, something that will be shown again if the latest David Villa rumours are proved true, and Levy should take advantage of this by looking at bringing in the very best players available this summer.

Although every summer can feel like a make or break period for a club, this year is likely to see huge changes at top sides around Europe and especially in the Premier League, and if Spurs do not pull at all the stops, they risk being left behind.

Nick Harris

I'm Nick Harris, Spurs fan and sports writer. Alongside HITC, I'm the founder, editor, writer, and fan of footballspirals.com and can be found on Twitter - @nicksharris. When I'm not watching sport I'm usually drinking coffee and checking updates on my phone in an antisocial manner.